Apple has already voiced out its disapproval of President Donald Trump’s executive order, but it appears the company might be mulling over the possibility of taking further action against the newly-inaugurated commander-in-chief and his administration.
Speaking to The Wall Street Journal, CEO Tim Cook said the order, banning Syrian refugees and citizens of seven other Muslim countries from entering the US, has affected hundreds of company employees – and now Apple feels it can no longer sit idle.
Despite repeatedly reaching out to “very, very senior people in the White House” in hopes of persuading the administration to revoke the immigration ban, Cook made it clear the Big A is not ruling out the possibility of pursuing legal action in case the White House continues to refuse to rescind the order.
While the outspoken CEO refrained from detailing under what conditions Apple could resort to legal action, he appealed to the administration to consider all the great things immigrants have done for the country.
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Stressing the value of foreigners to the US, Cook told The Wall Street Journal,”[m]ore than any country in the world, this country is strong because of our immigrant background and our capacity and ability as people to welcome people from all kinds of backgrounds. That’s what makes us special.”
In addition to its public condemnation of the travel ban, Cook added that Apple will be matching all donations by employees to refugees on a two-to-one basis, which will triple the value of all employee contributions.
In spite of the outcry, the president remains adamant about his decision:
Everybody is arguing whether or not it is a BAN. Call it what you want, it is about keeping bad people (with bad intentions) out of country!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 1, 2017
Apple is hardly the only company to have taken a stance against Trump’s inhumane order.
On Monday, thousands of Googlers across the country took it to the streets to speak up against the immigration ban, including founder Sergey Brin and CEO Sundar Pichai. Microsoft and Amazon also expressed readiness to stand up to the Trump administration, supporting a lawsuit against the executive order filed by Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson.
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